Yesterday was the perfect day. What did I do? Well, I slept in. I took a long hot shower (even though it's insanely hot out). I rode the bus into town and got a seat right away. I walked to our local mall (Marina City). I saw Harry Potter in the theaters all by myself. I had ate McDonalds for lunch, Indian for dinner, and apple dumplings (oh my word! so good!) for dessert. I held my "nephew" for almost an hour and he didn't cry (summer was too long for a 8 month old to remember his doting "Auntie Amy"). I spent time with my QD family. And the best part of the day was that I spoke to less than 20 people all day...and most of them I spoke to for less than 5 minutes. I know my extroverted friends don't understand it, but in my opinion there is nothing better than being alone...at least up to a certain point.
Now today...today was the perfect companion to "an introvert's perfect day." Today I was a social butterfly and truly enjoyed those I spent time with. I can't wait until I get to experience "the introvert's perfect day" part 1 and 2 again. :)
Sunday, August 14, 2011
Saturday, August 13, 2011
Brand New
The last week has been so many different things. It has been hard, fun, exhausting, and exciting. It has been a mix of the brand new and the comfortable, but mostly it has just been all about the brand new. I am a person who thrives on routine. I like things that are comfortable and familiar and every once in a while I like a splash of color and adventure in my life. This week was hard for me because there was a splash of routine and everything else was brand new.
During the past week, I got a new roommate, got a new Teaching Assistant (TA), got a new class, and started a new school year. Literally everywhere I turn is something new and it has been a little overwhelming. I have tried to take the time to get to know my roommate and my TA but there hasn't been much time. I have already fallen in love with my new class, but I haven't quite figured out what makes them tick yet.
I am excited about this year, but just for now, I'm going to take today and go do something oh so achingly familiar. I'm going to chill in Starbucks all morning long and then spend my afternoon with "my family" that I have adopted here in China. I'm so excited to have a day full of comfortable. :)
During the past week, I got a new roommate, got a new Teaching Assistant (TA), got a new class, and started a new school year. Literally everywhere I turn is something new and it has been a little overwhelming. I have tried to take the time to get to know my roommate and my TA but there hasn't been much time. I have already fallen in love with my new class, but I haven't quite figured out what makes them tick yet.
I am excited about this year, but just for now, I'm going to take today and go do something oh so achingly familiar. I'm going to chill in Starbucks all morning long and then spend my afternoon with "my family" that I have adopted here in China. I'm so excited to have a day full of comfortable. :)
Saturday, August 6, 2011
On Cat Litter and Chinese Sized Brooms
This morning I gave back the cat I have been watching for the last two weeks. As soon as her owner walked out the door I broke into a chorus of "Free at Last." The last two weeks have been great fun, but it's exhausting having a cat around who likes to wake you up in the middle of the night wanting to play or nibble on various pieces of anatomy not lucky enough to be under the sheets (my poor nose, chin, and ears for the worst of it). I'm looking to a full night's sleep again. :)
Also as soon as the cat vacated I decided to clean up my house. I've had cats living in my home most of my life and it never ceases to amaze me that cats are capable of getting their cat litter everywhere! I swear that the cat had a 15-20 foot radius going on this litter. Then again, she was insane. So, because stepping on cat litter all day just seems insanely gross to me, I pulled out my broom to sweep it up.
In America, I actually really enjoy sweeping. It's kind of a feeling of "Haha sucker!" when you sweep up all that offending dust. However in China, I avoid sweeping and usually leave it to my ayi. Why do I do that? Well, the reason is very simple. I have never seen a broom in China that exceeds about 2.5 to 3 feet tall. It's like the midget broom you hand your kid when you want them to help with the chores but don't want them to fall over cause the normal-person sized broom is too heavy. It's something you see in the store and say "Ah, that is so cute!" with no intention whatsoever of ever buying anything so ridiculous.
Why are brooms so short in China you ask? Other than the fact that I am as tall as most of the men here (I'm 5'5") and all the women are usually a head or more shorter than me, I have no idea. I've never seen a midget sized Chinese person and I love to have my brooms almost as tall as me...at least to my shoulder....my ayi also has to bend over to use my broom...though not quite so far. I simply don't get it. Maybe brooms are short for the same reason that the counters hit my upper thighs (let me tell you...leaky sinks are a bad thing...it looks like you wet yourself)...I always pull a chair up to my counter if I have lots of dishes to do so that my back doesn't mutiny and decide to leave me some day for all the abuse I have caused it.
Needless to say, I got only half my house swept before I gave up on the midget broom. My back was making threatening comments about packing it's bags. So, no dust death in the other half of my house for now. It can live in peace for just a bit longer. At least the cat litter radius has been terminated. ;)
Also as soon as the cat vacated I decided to clean up my house. I've had cats living in my home most of my life and it never ceases to amaze me that cats are capable of getting their cat litter everywhere! I swear that the cat had a 15-20 foot radius going on this litter. Then again, she was insane. So, because stepping on cat litter all day just seems insanely gross to me, I pulled out my broom to sweep it up.
In America, I actually really enjoy sweeping. It's kind of a feeling of "Haha sucker!" when you sweep up all that offending dust. However in China, I avoid sweeping and usually leave it to my ayi. Why do I do that? Well, the reason is very simple. I have never seen a broom in China that exceeds about 2.5 to 3 feet tall. It's like the midget broom you hand your kid when you want them to help with the chores but don't want them to fall over cause the normal-person sized broom is too heavy. It's something you see in the store and say "Ah, that is so cute!" with no intention whatsoever of ever buying anything so ridiculous.
Why are brooms so short in China you ask? Other than the fact that I am as tall as most of the men here (I'm 5'5") and all the women are usually a head or more shorter than me, I have no idea. I've never seen a midget sized Chinese person and I love to have my brooms almost as tall as me...at least to my shoulder....my ayi also has to bend over to use my broom...though not quite so far. I simply don't get it. Maybe brooms are short for the same reason that the counters hit my upper thighs (let me tell you...leaky sinks are a bad thing...it looks like you wet yourself)...I always pull a chair up to my counter if I have lots of dishes to do so that my back doesn't mutiny and decide to leave me some day for all the abuse I have caused it.
Needless to say, I got only half my house swept before I gave up on the midget broom. My back was making threatening comments about packing it's bags. So, no dust death in the other half of my house for now. It can live in peace for just a bit longer. At least the cat litter radius has been terminated. ;)
Friday, August 5, 2011
Transitions and Loved Ones Missed...
Yesterday at teacher orientation we had a short session about transitions. When I saw it on the schedule, my first thought was "Oh, this is for the new staff. I can tune it out." I turned out to be very wrong. The session had already been presented to our new staff about a month before at pre-field orientation. This session was for the staff who had already been here...the ones who were getting somewhat comfortable in China.
Our speaker, Jerry, started talking about the things that still bothered us. The crowded buses, the tourists, the language. He talked about the things we do to protect ourselves from the pain of those transitions. Then he started to talk about other transitions. Life's transitions. Old friends leaving and new people coming. Teaching new subjects. Losing a loved one.
If Jerry didn't have our attention before, he had our attention then. He was talking about losing a student, Tim, in a tragic accident last year. He told us how impressed the community was by how we had pulled together and shined through the loss of Tim. And suddenly, after being fine with Tim being gone for days, suddenly I wasn't again. The pain came rushing back. What does one do with the pain of grief? When does it get better?
There will be days when I think it's ok. I've gotten over it. And then other days when someone just says his name and I burst into tears. There are many days when I see his family and you can tell it still hurts them so much. So, my dear friends, please continue to think of us. Please don't forget that we are mourning right now. None of us is quite sure how to continue without time and none of us is quite ready for this school year because the pain is still too raw.
Please pray for us. We need every ounce of grace we can get. This transition still hurts so much.
Our speaker, Jerry, started talking about the things that still bothered us. The crowded buses, the tourists, the language. He talked about the things we do to protect ourselves from the pain of those transitions. Then he started to talk about other transitions. Life's transitions. Old friends leaving and new people coming. Teaching new subjects. Losing a loved one.
If Jerry didn't have our attention before, he had our attention then. He was talking about losing a student, Tim, in a tragic accident last year. He told us how impressed the community was by how we had pulled together and shined through the loss of Tim. And suddenly, after being fine with Tim being gone for days, suddenly I wasn't again. The pain came rushing back. What does one do with the pain of grief? When does it get better?
There will be days when I think it's ok. I've gotten over it. And then other days when someone just says his name and I burst into tears. There are many days when I see his family and you can tell it still hurts them so much. So, my dear friends, please continue to think of us. Please don't forget that we are mourning right now. None of us is quite sure how to continue without time and none of us is quite ready for this school year because the pain is still too raw.
Please pray for us. We need every ounce of grace we can get. This transition still hurts so much.
Monday, August 1, 2011
Such a Great Weekend
This last weekend was so very full and so very fun. On Saturday morning I joined a rather large group that went to TaiDong. TaiDong is an absolutely huge shopping area. It's had to explain to someone who hasn't seen it or been in China. It's blocks and blocks wide and you can get anything you can imagine there. There are whole streets dedicated to selling specific merchandise, there is a Wal-mart, tailors, food, and more. On Saturday some friends and I went to kitchen street and plant street. Since I've been here for three full years now, I view TaiDong like a job. It's a get in, get what you need, get out kind of place. This Saturday however, we took our new staff with us. Being with them was like seeing the whole area through new eyes. I started looking again. I saw things I have never seen before. I went into stores that I had never cared enough to go into and I realized I was missing a lot. It was fun. It was also very hot and we had some very heavy stuff. Thank God that our principal was willing to drive us out in the school's van. We would never have fit everything in a taxi. :)
That night I had my upstairs neighbors over for dinner and later more friends came over and we watched an episode of Psych and demolished most of a pan of Monkey Bread. (YUM!) I may have also gotten sucked into a book after they left that I had to finish and finally did around midnight.
Sunday felt almost as full as Saturday. We went to fellowship in the morning where I heard one of the best message I've heard in ages...It's still turning over and over in my brain and I think it will for quite a while. (I may share it with you later if you don't mind.) After fellowship it was off to lunch, to the grocery store, chilling at Starbucks for a little while, then over to a friend's house to watch the Godfather.
I've never seen the Godfather before, but it's such a well known movie that I felt like I should. I have to honestly say that I'm glad I watched it, but I didn't like it enough to ever watch it again. Some friends and I ditched after the first movie (they were starting the second) and went back to our side of town and watched the first Harry Potter together. That I enjoyed...especially since my friend has the most amazing couch and I was falling asleep under a warm blanket while watching a well loved movie. The end of the day couldn't have been any better.
So dear friends, my weekend was full of new friends, new perspectives, a kick-butt (at least it is kicking my butt) lesson from my Father, and fun times with good friends. It couldn't have been better, but now the introvert in me is screaming for some time alone so I'm going to be lazy this morning. I'll go back to social butterfly this afternoon. After all...summer is over for us teachers on Thursday...but that means the fun is just beginning! :)
That night I had my upstairs neighbors over for dinner and later more friends came over and we watched an episode of Psych and demolished most of a pan of Monkey Bread. (YUM!) I may have also gotten sucked into a book after they left that I had to finish and finally did around midnight.
Sunday felt almost as full as Saturday. We went to fellowship in the morning where I heard one of the best message I've heard in ages...It's still turning over and over in my brain and I think it will for quite a while. (I may share it with you later if you don't mind.) After fellowship it was off to lunch, to the grocery store, chilling at Starbucks for a little while, then over to a friend's house to watch the Godfather.
I've never seen the Godfather before, but it's such a well known movie that I felt like I should. I have to honestly say that I'm glad I watched it, but I didn't like it enough to ever watch it again. Some friends and I ditched after the first movie (they were starting the second) and went back to our side of town and watched the first Harry Potter together. That I enjoyed...especially since my friend has the most amazing couch and I was falling asleep under a warm blanket while watching a well loved movie. The end of the day couldn't have been any better.
So dear friends, my weekend was full of new friends, new perspectives, a kick-butt (at least it is kicking my butt) lesson from my Father, and fun times with good friends. It couldn't have been better, but now the introvert in me is screaming for some time alone so I'm going to be lazy this morning. I'll go back to social butterfly this afternoon. After all...summer is over for us teachers on Thursday...but that means the fun is just beginning! :)
Friday, July 29, 2011
Happy Birthday to ME!
Sometime in February I celebrated my birthday with my class. Celebrating birthdays in a big deal among the parents at my school and teacher birthdays are an even bigger deal. Because my birthday is in July, I typically celebrate my half birthday with my class...unless there are no students with birthdays in January (it is far more awkward to just celebrate you then share with other students)....In that case I push it back to the next month with student birthdays. This year that month was February.
I had a fantastic Room Mom this year. She coordinated all the other mothers and got me a gift certificate for two meals at Le Meridien. Le Meridien is a new-ish five star hotel in town. All the five star hotels in town (yes, there are several) have an insanely good and insanely expensive buffet. So, two tickets to eat at Le Meridien's buffet is like a dream come true and an invitation to eat until you are ready to burst.
For the last five months I have tried multiple times to use these coupons but something always came up and I was unable to go. However, recently the pressure has been on. The coupons expire the end of August so I needed to use them. Tonight I finally got my chance.
Karen (my good friend and fellow second grade teacher) and I finally went to the buffet tonight. It was amazing. Out of the three platefuls I ate I only found one thing I didn't like. Everything was divine and I literally felt sick because I was so full when we left. Plus, Le Meridien is just so beautiful. It's decorated modern style rather than traditional and, let me tell you, I would decorate my house modern style if I could....someday I really hope to.... :)
Needless to say after waddling out of the buffet and the beautiful hotel, Karen and I went on a rather long walk. I don't know if it actually burned off any of my dinner weight, but I felt much better when we got back...
So, dear friends, my favorite teacher gift that I have ever gotten is definitely going to be those coupons. So much better than that fuzzy pink mirror with wings and halo or those awful grandma style rugs. Please, please can we skip the bad gifts again next year and just go for the amazing food? Thanks! :)
I had a fantastic Room Mom this year. She coordinated all the other mothers and got me a gift certificate for two meals at Le Meridien. Le Meridien is a new-ish five star hotel in town. All the five star hotels in town (yes, there are several) have an insanely good and insanely expensive buffet. So, two tickets to eat at Le Meridien's buffet is like a dream come true and an invitation to eat until you are ready to burst.
For the last five months I have tried multiple times to use these coupons but something always came up and I was unable to go. However, recently the pressure has been on. The coupons expire the end of August so I needed to use them. Tonight I finally got my chance.
Karen (my good friend and fellow second grade teacher) and I finally went to the buffet tonight. It was amazing. Out of the three platefuls I ate I only found one thing I didn't like. Everything was divine and I literally felt sick because I was so full when we left. Plus, Le Meridien is just so beautiful. It's decorated modern style rather than traditional and, let me tell you, I would decorate my house modern style if I could....someday I really hope to.... :)
Needless to say after waddling out of the buffet and the beautiful hotel, Karen and I went on a rather long walk. I don't know if it actually burned off any of my dinner weight, but I felt much better when we got back...
So, dear friends, my favorite teacher gift that I have ever gotten is definitely going to be those coupons. So much better than that fuzzy pink mirror with wings and halo or those awful grandma style rugs. Please, please can we skip the bad gifts again next year and just go for the amazing food? Thanks! :)
Lessons from Him
So one of my best friends asked me recently what God had been teaching me. As I sat and contemplated her answer for just a moment, she quickly hurried to add "or is now a dry spell time?" I gave her an answer about what he has been teaching me recently, but I continued to contemplate her answer for days. This morning I realized that He had been teaching me a lesson that I hadn't even caught onto yet. That happens to me often. He'll be trying to teach me something for months and then suddenly, it will get through my thick head.
Last night's adventures (if you don't know what they are, read the previous blog entry) taught me two important lessons that He has been working on for about a month now...hindsight really is definitely 20-20. The two lessons were it's ok to look like an idiot sometimes and sometimes you have to ask for help.
I hate looking like an idiot. I often try to explain my mistakes away or run away in embarrassment when I feel like an idiot. Finding the cat in my house last night left me with a desire to run away and die of embarrassment.
I also really struggle asking for help. I often think that anything that can't be done alone doesn't need to be done at all (NOT TRUE!). I hate letting others see my weakness. God has been giving me so many tasks lately that I cannot handle on my own. I'm constantly having to ask for help. I'm finally starting to get that lesson into my head and asking for help is getting somewhat easier.
I also started thinking about dry spells this morning. I tried to remember the last time I've had one. Honestly, since I became serious about following God 6 years ago, there hasn't been a moment in my life when He hasn't been teaching me something. Usually the lesson is "I love you. You can trust me. Nothing you do can make me leave." It's a lesson I'm having so much trouble grasping. However, I have to say that no matter how hard the lessons are, I am going to ask that He not stop giving them. I love constantly learning from Him even when the lessons hurt.
Last night's adventures (if you don't know what they are, read the previous blog entry) taught me two important lessons that He has been working on for about a month now...hindsight really is definitely 20-20. The two lessons were it's ok to look like an idiot sometimes and sometimes you have to ask for help.
I hate looking like an idiot. I often try to explain my mistakes away or run away in embarrassment when I feel like an idiot. Finding the cat in my house last night left me with a desire to run away and die of embarrassment.
I also really struggle asking for help. I often think that anything that can't be done alone doesn't need to be done at all (NOT TRUE!). I hate letting others see my weakness. God has been giving me so many tasks lately that I cannot handle on my own. I'm constantly having to ask for help. I'm finally starting to get that lesson into my head and asking for help is getting somewhat easier.
I also started thinking about dry spells this morning. I tried to remember the last time I've had one. Honestly, since I became serious about following God 6 years ago, there hasn't been a moment in my life when He hasn't been teaching me something. Usually the lesson is "I love you. You can trust me. Nothing you do can make me leave." It's a lesson I'm having so much trouble grasping. However, I have to say that no matter how hard the lessons are, I am going to ask that He not stop giving them. I love constantly learning from Him even when the lessons hurt.
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